THERE were calls last night for urgent support to help vulnerable people with energy costs this winter.
It comes after two major gas suppliers, Firmus and SSE, announced price increases as well as recent significant rises in electricity and home heating oil costs.
Commissioner for Older People Eddie Lynch has called for the introduction of an emergency hardship fund or the establishment of a payment similar to the £200 Covid-19 heating payment, which was made earlier this year to people receiving certain benefits.
"Introducing a hardship fund or one-off payment would go a long way to helping them get through the difficult winter months ahead. There will be many older people in particular who are worried about their ability to heat their homes this winter," he said.
"The pandemic has had a major impact on reducing many older people's social opportunities, as many senior citizen forums, church and community groups have stopped operating, leaving older people with less options to socialize and get out of their houses. This will result in spending more time at home this winter than normal with even more pressure on their energy costs.
"With many older people already struggling to keep up with their utility bills, I am deeply concerned about the impact these price rises will have on some of our most vulnerable people living in Northern Ireland."
He added that he had written to Communities Minister Deirdre Hargey asking her to "urgently address this issue and help ease this burden for those who cannot afford price rises of this magnitude".
